Black & Decker CMM1200
19-Inch 24-Volt Cordless
Electric Mulching Lawn Mower List Price: $766.79Price: $358.95 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping.
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products by Black & Decker
Technical Details[] Powerful 24-volt, 1,200-watt permanent magnet electric motor; mows 1/3-acre on a single charge
[] Cutting height adjusts with the touch of a button; starts by simply pulling a lever
[] Mower stores upright for compact storage
[] 2-year limited warranty; limited lifetime warranty on cutting deck
[] Included with mower: bag and mulching plate.
read more Technical details...Most Helpful Customer ReviewsCMM1200 Black&Decker Cordless Lawnmower, March 18, 2007
By
someNOthing "enlighten me" (Dallas, TX)
I just purchased this mower and mowed my lawn today. First, the positives:
1. This thing is as-advertised. There's no assembly required other than arranging the mulching bag and removing the mulcher - if that's what you want to do.
2. It was incredibly easy to start this thing - insert key and lift lever.
3. No mess, no gas, no oil, no air filter. The only maintenance described in the service manual is blade sharpening (once to twice per year) and battery replacement. (Possible two years?).
4. Charging the unit is as easy as charging a cell phone and it charged up overnight. It had enough juice to mow my 1/3rd acre lot with heavy spring weeds that were also a little wet without running out of battery juice.
5. It was very easy to clean. Just disconnect the key and then you can turn it over to clean the blade and guard without worrying about oil or gas spilling.
6. It's easy to disconnect handle and mulch bag for storage.
Negatives:1. Although it's not incredibly heavy, it's not as light as my 5HP gas Craftsman mower. Since there's no self-propelling feature, it can get heavy if you had to go up hills - my lawn is relatively flat so no problem there.
2. The unit is basically plastic. It has a cheap feel to it - although I'm sure it would be too heavy if it was metal.
3. There's really nothing protecting the battery underneath the top cover and it's barely held there with a nylon strap.
4. The paper instruction manual is worthless. It has very little information in it and it's hard to read because one section is written and you have to go to another part of the manual for the pictures.
5. The unit came with Styrofoam inserts that surrounded the battery. I had a very strong feeling that these inserts were for shipping only and must be removed before operating the unit. However, there is nothing in the manual that states this either way and I had to figure it out for myself.
6. There are no instructions for how to replace the battery - you are instructed to take it to a service dealer. Perhaps they could have put more effort into the documentation.
7. The mulching bag doesn't seem to hold much grass. I had to empty it three times before I was done mowing.
All and all, I love this mower. I hated having to jack with gas and oil and filters and maintenance of gas mowers. Plus, this thing is relatively quiet compared to my gas mower. I recommend it.
Long Term Owner - positive review, January 2, 2008
By
MarkWK "MarkWK" (Eastern PA)
Like most of you, whenever I go to buy an appliance or tool on the internet I read the customer reviews to try to get a feel for the product's long term performance before I invest in it. Unfortunately, many of the reviews have been submitted by short term owners who are still jazzed over their purchase and haven't used it long enough to offer a comprehensive assessment of the product. That's why I decided to review this mower now after I've used it for a few seasons.
I've had my cordless mower since May of 2004. It is actually the CMM1000, the model previous to the CMM1200. I understand, based on the number of negative reviews, that the quality of design and manufacturing of this product could be considered suspect. Temper that with the reality that most satisfied customers remain mum while most dissatisfied customers howl to the heavens. I've owned several other Black and Decker products with mixed results. My drill? Awesome. My weed wacker? The first one was junk. The second one - a cordless model - worked out. My power washer? I've gone through two of them and I wouldn't wish one upon my worst enemy.
But even after a few years of service, I still love my mower.
At the end of the first season, something broke in the electronic guts under the cover that the switch was attached to. At first it wouldn't shut off until I removed the key, then after a while it wouldn't start. Since getting that fixed, I've had no problems.
It seems to operate just as long now as it did new. If there has been any falloff in performance, it hasn't been significant enough for me to complain about. Power is very good for the task of mowing and mulching but you have to keep in mind that it won't have the shear output oomph of a gas mower. If you keep the tasks tailored to the capabilities of battery power, you should be more than happy with the CMM1200. The mower is quieter than a gas powered model, but not as quiet as you might think. My neighbors love it, but standing right next to it you still have to raise your voice to be heard. It is also heavier than you expect and pushing it around gives a good workout. That can be considered a positive. But, though I'm over forty, I'm a reletively large and fit guy. Flinging it around the yard isn't a problem for me.
I have a medium sized lawn including ten trees and one steep side-hill section about ten feet wide and 150 feet long. The whole job is a little big for the mower to handle in one session, especially during those growth spurts in June. Usually, I do the front yard one day and the sides and smaller back yard the next. It mulches the grass really well so I don't have to bag or rake.
In the fall, I pulverize the leaves in place and this has contributed to my lawn improving each spring. Trust me, it is just as much work as raking but with the added benefit of fertilizing the lawn.
During the fall of 2007, the trees in our region held on to their leaves until the last minute. In early December, it all came down at once. The mower was a bit overwhelmed and it couldn't keep up as quickly as I would have liked. So I bought the MM875, which is the corded version of the same mower, to use as a supplement for next year. It uses the same blades as the CMM1200 and operates similarly.
So when the grass is too thick or the leaves too numerous for the battery mower to handle entirely, I'll switch to the MM875 to finish up. This is not to say the CMM1200 isn't good enough. The mower is more than capable, downright impressive, as long as you don't expect perfection when you push beyond the envelope.
Am I happy I bought this product? If the switch hadn't malfunctioned that first year I'd be giving this mower five stars. I'd buy it again, even if the thing died tomorrow!
$15.99
